Let’s Party – Tanner’s Huntington Beach

Last winter I was hired by Less+More, a design and branding agency, to create a series of lifestyle images for Tanners, the hip new multi level ocean front restaurant at Paséa Hotel in Huntington Beach, CA. We would be shooting lifestyle images and some food and dining shots as well. The images were to reflect the overall upscale environment with a casual beach community vibe along with a slight amount of irreverence that is the Tanner’s experience.  Think motorcycle chains that compose the main lighting feature over the bar.

Jeremy Backo, the Art Director at Less+More was looking for authentic, natural and spontaneous looking images of people engaging in the moment.  Our approach was basically to have a party –  drinks, music, food and let the interaction and engagement happen while I shoot what naturally unfolds. The marketing staff at the hotel provided 3 real life couples as our talent for the day. For the first half hour or so I’m basically just firing the camera to build up the energy, but soon the conversation (and the drinks) kick in and we are indeed partying.

Chemistry among the talent is critical and these people really brought it with authentic and genuine interaction.  We shot at the communal table in the downstairs restaurant and then upstairs for cocktails at sunset in Treehouse, their roof top lounge overlooking the Pacific Ocean.  After the shoot ended,  our talent enjoyed an evening of dining and complimentary accommodations at Paséa. Party on.

“Marshall Williams did a great job capturing the unique vibe at Tanner’s. His style of shooting, his work flow, and his crew were all extremely efficient. They captured everything on our shot list and much more. It was a tough edit getting down to the final selects but in the end the client was thrilled with the images.” – Jeremy Backo